Wednesday, September 26, 2012

26 September 1943 - The Scorer Of Seville

On 26 September 1943, forward Juan Arza scored a hat-trick on his debut for Sevilla. He went on to become the club's all-time La Liga scoring leader.

Twenty years old at the time, the Estella-born Arza had played for Alavés and Màlaga before joining Sevilla. There, in his first official match, his three goals helped them to a 5-2 victory over Sabadell. They were the first of seventeen goals he scored that season as Sevilla finished in third.

He remained with them for sixteen seasons, winning the league in 1946 and the Copa del Rey in 1948. His best scoring season was 1954-55, when his twenty-nine goals won him the Pichichi as La Liga's top marksman.

Before leaving Sevilla in 1959, Arza had collected a total of 207 goals. Although that ranks him second in the club's all-time scoring list, behind Guillermo Campanal (214), Arza's league tally of 182 remains the highest in club history.